Reviews by GeezLynn:

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On tap at the Blind Tiger in NYC. Always a treat to try a pretty rare (in least in the NYC area) brew like this one and even better to find it on tap. This one poured the expected near black, with very little head, no lacing and seemingly non existent carbonation. Some roasty malt notes, chocolate, cocoa, moderate hopping. I sensed some sourness layered in there somewhere. Nice stuff, subtle, not the kind of Impy stout that will knock your taste buds out. Less of a R.I.S. and more of a mellow, lighter body wise, easy drinking but still fairly complex Belgian style stout. Worth a try.

Generously given to me after volunteering for the 2008 Beeradvocate.com Belgian Beer Festival.

Belgian Imperial Stout. The words drip with oxymoronic wonder. No idea what to expect here, but eager to give it a try.

The pour looked like a hearty mix of apple cider and hot chocolate. Smells sweet of figgy, dark fruit, tinge of alcohol. Tastes fruity as well, full malty flavor, very nice. Smooth beer with no lingering taste after the initial sour nibble.

I have to say, I was really impressed with this beer, which I feared would be nothing more than a gimicy brew. I'd say it's worth a try if you can get it.

Pours hazy brown with a tall, thick tan head comprised of very tiny bubbles. Roasted malt, sour yeast, caramel, fig, and earth in the aroma. Coffee and caramel in the taste, lots of choclate malt, all blended with the Belgian sweet-and-sour yeast. Starts sweet and ends tangy.

A- This beer pours a full glass of creamy light tan head, even with a gentle pour. After about 5 minutes a dark walnut black body forms underneath. The body is pretty dense but a light hue of light comes through at the very base. Still no sign of carbonation.

S- The smell of dark roasted malt has a smell of dark candy sugar and sweet dates to it.

T- The taste of dark smooth malt has a note of wood and milk chocolate to it. There are sweet dark candy notes and some light prune qualities. After the malt flavor there is a light tartness with a burnt but sweet note at the finish. There is a taste of alcohol at the finish.

M- This beer has a medium-light mouthfeel with a slight creamy texture and a big soda pop fizz in the finish. There is alcohol warmth that turns to an alcohol burn as this beer warms.

D- This beer has a big alcohol heat but not much depth in malt and not that much flavor. I didn't notice any interesting yeast qualities that it alluded to on the bottle. Inside the logo there is the date of 2003 but I didn't have any stamped on date, which was odd because the text said it could be aged for up to 8 years. I don't think age would help this beer.

Appearance - Poured a very deep, earthy brown. Foam dissipated pretty quickly and left a small tracing of lace around the top

Smell - very rich dark fruit smell, with a underlining hint of roasted malts. The dark fruit is very pronounced.

Taste - At first, very sweet and then sour, definitely taste what i smelled with the dark fruits. by the end i tasted malts and a hint, a very tiny hint of the coffee - the hint of coffee came more with the after taste than anything. hides the alcohol very well for a beer that comes in at 10.5%abv

Mouthfeel - heavy, yet it is very liquid, moves around seamlessly.

Drinkability - this was different - you could tell it had a Belgian twist on it. But they melded the maltiness and sweetness together pretty well...I would say this is more of a dessert type beer. I think it would pair well with a nice cherry pie or other similar desserts. Not something I think I would enjoy by itself.

a well made and tasty beer, just not something to have by itself, imo.

Be careful and pour slowly...gushed upon opening and left some sediment in the murk. Not sure why, as no shaking occurred. Just a temperamental one, I guess. The head is huge and stays big. The color is about the darkest milk chocolate-brown that brown can be before turning black. Thick walls of lace form as the head very slowly minimizes. No points taken off for its boisterousness, no hard feelings.

Aroma is malted milk, sweet cream, cheap coffee and shavings of dark baking chocolate. Has a kind of mineral slant that carries over into the flavor.

And the flavor is a weird one. Acidic fruitiness, low-grade coffee and terribly bitter chocolate chip are masked by that mineral flavor, which gives a soft, flat, tart metallic sheen to everything. Sour where it shouldn't be. Could be the "Irish ale yeast" that's used, as I taste some parallels between this and various Irish stouts. There's a great flavor here somewhere, but it's beset by problems.

Mouthfeel is a frothy one. Not as creamy as it could or should be. Finish turns things a bit fruity, still with a metal/mineral glaze. And yes, the long dry finish promised on the label is here...again reminding of various Irish stouts, and even some Scotch ales with that weird, musty, mineral/metal thing going on.

The 10.5% alcohol is superbly well-hidden. The thing looks amazing. It's definitely got its moments in other departments, but really, I'd probably pass this up in the future. There are better Belgian stouts out there (Special Extra Export and Obscura come to mind), but you gotta give it props for originality.

T: dark flavor of malts, chocolate, and coffee. Sweet black liquorice and alcohol notes. Sweetness is followed by sharp sour bitterness, overall a very sweet imperial stout. Most characteristics vanish/very subtle due to sweetness, I get two things out of this brew...sweet then bitter, not much else

M: syrup-like feel and very smooth and creamy. Body is a good heavy

D: with all due respect, I am going to have to try this one again sometime. I am not sure what to think? I am a stout lover but this was somewhat of a bad experience for me...dang!

Tip of the hat to Papsoe. A dark not jet black colour with some white head. Aroma of yeast and coffee and chocolate. Unique rich stout, not as thick at a top RIS, not a Bell stout, just enjoyable Belgian style, similar to Hercules. Great balance as not too coffee (spelled Koffee), nor too chocolate, nor too bitter.

11.2oz bottle. 2003 vintage per label. Pours a dark brownish black with a massive light tan head. There is a lot of carbonation in the bottle, which forced me to pour extremely slowly to avoid a foam over. The aroma is a bit sour with roasted malt and cocoa powder. The taste like the aroma suggests is dark roasted malts with some coffee flavored bitterness in the finish and a warming booziness that lingers into the aftertaste. This is a "Belgian Imperial Stout", so people should not compare it to a big bold Russian Imperial Stout. This is not an extreme beer like some RIS, it is kicked down a few notches but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Overall, this is a pretty solid brew for what it is and is definitely worth a shot.

Pours murky dark brown with a 1/4 glass of tan head and rich lacing. The smell carries some mild roasted coffee and chocolate malts and is much more fruity than British-derived imperial stouts. Most malt flavors are obliterated by the extremely large alcohol presence in the beer. Strong fusel alcohols are predominant throughout. Alcohol-derived dark fruit flavors plus a little burnt coffee malt squeeze in at the swallow. The body is heavy and creamy as you'd expect. Rather difficult to finish due to the overwhelming booze content. Not something I'll be looking for in future.

Had this at the Delirium Cafe in Brussels. Never had a Belgian IS before.

Appearance - Very dark brown....not opaque. Very little off white bubbly head arose but fell quickly.

Smell - Fairly sweet and malty with a little belgian yeast. Some chocolate and roasted characteristics are there with some black licorice and fruit.

Taste - Up front dark fruits are present. There is a good alcohol kick and some chocolate and roasted malt. A little vanilla flavor is there too. Of course belgian yeast is in the taste as well. Interesting and good.

Mouthfeel - A thin but syrupy feel to it. Carbonation as expected.

Drinkability - Not bad...alcohol takes from it.

A good beer which was very interesting to taste. I would revisit it again but I dont think its possible.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with light carbonation and no overwhelming character except that this is like no stout I've ever tasted. Flavors are a cross between wine and a sour. Not terribly appealing or pleasant on any level. Very different flavors. Spices, cooked fruit and some grape acid but not the kind of flavors that have you wanting more.

Interesting high acid, aged red wine finish. I can't really imagine drinking a glass of this for any reason other than a tasting experience.

12 oz. These Belgian stouts have a great appearance. Dark brown/black with a huge light tan head. It kind of ends their though. Very roasty malt and coffee aroma. Something astringent. Carbonation is off the charts and really clouds everything. Earthy, fairly clean finish. This style has potential, but I just don't get it yet. They really should make a seperate category for these.

Was recommended this when I bought some other stouts. Expiration date on the cap says Sept 2014. More than half of it gushed out when I opened it. My bad for storing it on its side when it explicitly says to store upright.

Smell: Smells very sour. Not sure if an imperial stout is supposed to smell like this might be infected.

Appearance: Kind of a murky dark brown. Not so attractive.

Taste: Very flavorful. I would call it "meaty". The sour kind of adds to it.

Mouthfeel: Almost bubbly. It's not a light beer, but the carbonation suspends it.

Overall: I would definitely drink it again. Easily overlooked due to it's mediocre appearance. Wish I hadn't lost half of it to gushing.

S: yeasty and fruity, bananas, melons, cantelops at first before yielding to some sweet dark chocolate and lactose notes.

T: dark cocoa beans and dry, milky lactose. Some dark fruit with a very spicy alcohol bite. Theres a spicy fruitiness of apple cider and yeastiness as well detected. The finish is hot and spicy with some alcohol fusels and a dark earthy bitterness. More alcohol then roasted character for my liking.

M: medium, oily, and was very spicy and bitter.

D: limited due to the hot and spicy nature. A big alcohol bite limits this to a sipper and distracts from the flavor.